carved from a walnut stump in 1953, in under a year, capping off a 40 year career of carving

In the winter of 1952-53, a man approached Mooney and asked him if he would be interested in using a massive walnut tree stump for one of his carvings. Mooney traveled to Charm, Ohio, saw the gnarled stump and in it he could see the Union Pacific Big Boy. He started carving on January 13th and would finish it that year on October 30th, his 68th birthday. The Union Pacific Big Boy is one of the most beautiful carvings that Mooney created from walnut. 

Mooney captured the last of the steamers with a great tribute to steam history through swirls of walnut that only can be found in nature. He selected which parts of the stump to use and did not shy away from the difficult knots and swirls in the wood. In fact, he chose the most difficult part for the tender, carving from the most inner part of the burled tree stump.

for more intricate hand made models, see https://www.facebook.com/thewarthermuseum/